Strikeforce headhunter Robbie Lawler simply waited for a KO that never came

A middleweight, Lawler met opponent Renato “Babalu” Sobral at a catchweight of 195 pounds in the main event of Wednesday’s “Strikeforce: Los Angeles” event. After three rounds and 15 minutes of action, he lost two out of three rounds on the judges’ scorecards and suffered a unanimous-decision defeat.

“Plain and simple, I thought I was going to knock him out,” Lawler said. “It was inevitable that I’d put my hands on him and knock him out, and it just never happened.”

The soft-spoken fighter said the Showtime-televised fight taught him a lesson, though it may have been one he’d already learned.

“I have power, and I rely on it a little too much, and I wasn’t able to finish him, and he showed a lot of heart,” Lawler (19-6 MMA, 1-2 SF) said. “That’s what I think happened.”

Sobral, a submission specialist, did not stick to his conventional role and struck with the middleweight for most of the fight, which took place at the Nokia Theatre in downtown Los Angeles. Lawler was the clear winner in visible damage, though Sobral outworked him and scored crucial takedowns that likely won the fight.

Lawler, a flagship member of Granite City, Ill.’s H.I.T. Squad, spent much of the fight walking down Sobral (36-8 MMA, 2-1 SF) and invited one takedown with a flying knee earmarked for his highlight reel. He didn’t linger on his back, but he struggled to find a home for his powerful left hand.

“I think I rocked him a few times,” Lawler said. “I just couldn’t capitalize.”

“But maybe the judges thought I was hurt, and that’s why he got the decision.”

It was Lawler’s second Strikeforce loss in three appearances. In his previous performance, he delivered a highlight-reel, one-punch knockout of Melvin Manhoef at January’s “Strikeforce: Miami” show.

“I believe in myself that I’m going to finish guys and knock them out,” Lawler said. “Maybe if I had another two minutes, I would have.”

While the fighter was open to the idea of competing again at 195 or even 205 pounds, his next appearance will likely be at middleweight, according to Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker.

“[Lawler] didn’t really have to [fight Sobral], and we asked him to step up, and he did,” Coker said. “But his natural fighting weight is 185 pounds, so I’m sure that’s where we’ll ask him to fight next time.”

Sobral stepped in for Wednesday’s catchweight bout when Lawler’s original opponent, middleweight Jason “Mayhem” Miller, was indefinitely suspended by the Tennessee Athletic Commission for his role in a post-event brawl at “Strikeforce: Nashville” in April. (The matter is still unresolved.)

Lawler doesn’t believe his weight gain had a negative effect on his performance.

“I didn’t feel good because I left it in the hands of the judges,” he said. “I knew I could have done more.”

Often considered among the sport’s top-10 middleweights, Lawler has often fallen prey to submission specialists. This past June, he met Jake Shields for the Strikeforce middleweight title and tapped to a guillotine choke in a little more than two minutes. Still, his go-for-broke striking style has made him a fan favorite. His bout with Scott Smith at “EliteXC: Primetime” in May 2008 was one of the year’s most exciting bouts, though it ended in a no-contest when Smith took an accidental thumb to the eye.

Lawler said he’ll temper his aggression with strategy the next time out.

“I’m going to pump my jab a little bit more and win rounds and still try to hurt people as usual,” he said. “I think after I pump my jab and move my feet a little more, the knockouts will come.”

As the UFC 189 tour made its last stop in Dublin, featherweight champ Jose Aldo was met with a torrent of abuse from the Irish fans. It might have been unpleasant, but it might also have been just what he needed.